Dream Gateway - Near Kalispell, Montana (Guest Post!)

Named for Spring Creek that runs - above AND below ground - through its 100 acres, this ranch north of Kalispell, Montana, was deeded into a conservation trust. Future generations (human, furry, fishy, fern-y, all and sundry...) benefit by protection from development that allows native wildlife and habitat to flourish. (The gateway fascinated…a portal for hopeful dreams…. )

Many thanks to Pat Richards for today’s view and musing fodder. Read more of her tales of true adventure here AND hard copy/Kindle compiled stories here.

Glorious Display - Sunrise, Corvallis, Montana

Awakened by 

 the stirring of the day
Dawn calls to my 

 heart, or so I thought 
Overwhelmed by

  splendor, Your glory on display

I join with all 

 creation singing 

our God‘s 

 praise

- 5 July 2021 Pat Richards.  

    (Thanks for the early-bird share, sis!)

Comfort Food for My Soul - Bitterroot Valley, Montana

Familiar vistas spread before my eyes

Revealing layers of consistent beauty 

Never cease to calm, inspire, refresh

During our annual visit to Big Sky Country, Gary (MWH aka My Wonderful Husband) and I take every opportunity to just be outside. Breathing in the fresh air under endless blue skies, savoring views of rolling plains edged by mountainous peaks, or meandering along the river's edge.  

We return home refreshed in body and soul.

- Pat Richards

(A big thanks to Sis 3 (aka intrepid traveler Pat Richards) for sharing another guest post from their 2018 visit. Current crisp autumn skies look just about the same today, but with added swathes of yellow tamarack in the mountains.)

Alliteration Illustrated - Stevensville, Montana

My favourite guest-poster strikes again! Big thanks to Pat Richards for sharing her thoughts and visuals from their recent Montana visit.

 

Alliteration Illustrated

The babbling brook bubbles by.

And indeed it did!

Musically mesmerizing my soul.

Relaxation music courtesy of Mother Nature

While the Bitterroot River can hardly be termed a brook, simply sitting on a rock watching and listening as it flows by is one of my favorite Montana pastimes.   

- Pat

Quiet Reflection.- Missoula, Montana

Today's gorgeous evening view overlooking Missoula is courtesy of Pat Richards, who also shares her hands-on India / Asia perspectives at JourneysWithGod.com.
Thanks, Pat, for always making the time to share your guest blogger Montana perspectives!

In moments of quiet reflection, I begin to see clearer the depths of who I am. 
Are the waters of my soul still, clear, reflecting light?
I pray it is so.

For the world beyond deserves to see beauty, light and life in me.

No Barrier at All - The Teller Trail, Corvallis Montana

"What have we to do this day, more pressing than the call to wander. " Pat R

"Dear old world', she murmured, 'you are very lovely, and I am glad to be alive in you."

- L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables (Anne of Green Gables, #1

Thanks to guest blogger Pat Richards for sharing views and thoughts from her Montana wanderings!

To see other far-flung paths Pat's feet have trod, take a peek at JourneysWithGod.com.

Roots - The Teller Trail, Corvallis, Montana

Roots exposed

the essence of life

holding firm 

when all else is washed away. 

-Pat R

Pat (aka Big Sis #3) journeys hither and yon, but always circles back to Montana. (Sadly, annual visits seem to coincide with forest fire season...but, as you can see, her eye for beauty connected to our inner life is undeterred by rampant smoke.) 

Read more on Pat's purpose-filled travels at JourneysWithGod.com .

Some Days Sunset - Corvallis, Montana

"Some days clouds drift over the canyon,

horsetails, bits of high cotton.

In the afternoon, then,

the sky quickens, tumbles —

a dark creek crashing down the mountain...."

-From Back Forty: Manifesto by Joe Wilkins 

Big thanks for today's photo to Pat Richards. 

To see more through Pat's eyes, browse around in JourneysWithGod.com.